1897 



IGLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



169 



with God. For a little time I felt almost gtoo 

 sick to breathe even to myself thai old familiar 

 "Lord, help." I employed the same physician 

 who treated Mrs. Root: and in about a week 

 he said my fever was broken, but that I should 

 have to be caroful. and not be surprised if it 

 took me a good while to regain my appetite, 

 strength, and energy; and it was just about 

 four weeks from the time 1 was taken down 

 before I ventured to step outdoors. 



I suppose others have had a like experience 

 to my own. The idea would keep getting into 

 my feverish brain that my work on earth was 

 done, and that I was too ricketty and broken 

 down to think of any tning regarding the fu- 

 ture. In fact, it seemed to tire me to think or 

 even to live. As usual, .Satan suggested that 

 it would be a fine thing 7iot to live. I remem- 

 ber one feverish night, while I was suffering, 

 the idea some way got into my mind that death 

 was not going to give me any relief, for I should 

 soon get awfully tired of beina dead. So I 

 rejected Satan's suggestions. And, by the way, 

 I am inclined to think there is a great truth 

 somewhere along in this line. 



Within the past year there seems to have 

 been almost a mania for suicides. Somebody 

 has callea it an epidemic of suicides. Now, if 

 some of these poor deluded victims of Satan do 

 not get "tired of being dead," or, in other 

 words, if they have not already discovered that 

 they have made a terrible blunder, then I am 

 mistaken. Some have chosen death rather 

 than face the consequences of having their 

 criminal proceedings brought to light. They 

 seemed to think that in death, and a self- 

 inflicted death, they will find a refu^ie. I feel 

 sure they have made a mistake. 



As 1 began to recover from the effects of the 

 fever, and my brain began to get clearer, I 

 remember a good many times, especially while 

 suffering, that I prayed very earnestly that 

 God would not only give me health, but that 

 he would give me wisdom that I might advise 

 and direct others in this matter of caring for 

 these bodies of ours. By the way, I think I 

 shall have to confess that 1 seldom pray with 

 much earnestness unless I am in trouble of 

 some sort. If this is true of all of us, dear 

 •Christian friends, we ought to be careful how 

 we murmur or complain of sickness and pain, 

 or trouble of any sort. For a time it seemed as 

 if my prayers were not heeded. But I have had 

 too many similar experiences to lose faith, and 

 I knew that the great Father would in his own 

 good time give me light amid the darkness. 

 Our text has it exactly: "Who forgiveih all 

 thine iniquities, who healeth all thy diseases." 

 Not only that, but in the next verse we have, 

 " Who redeemeth thy life from destruction." 

 Without faith in God, the inevitable conclusion 

 would be that I was going to destruction. I do 

 not know whether other people are beset by 

 similar despondent feelings like my own or not. 

 I remember of feeling it almost impossible to 

 shako off the impression that kept continually 

 getting such a firm hold on me that I should 

 never get well. The doctors told me years ago 

 that I should never again be a "well man;' 

 but since then I have had some most glorious 

 experiences in the way of health, energy, vigor, 

 and even rejoicing, because of my strength of 

 muscle. Well, there is still a little more of our 

 text: "Who crowneth thee with lovingkind- 

 ness and tender mercies." For many days it 

 would seem as if I was not making any gain at 

 all. Then there would be mornings when I felt 

 a good deal better, when I could sing with 

 feeble voice, "Praise God, from whom all bless- 

 ings flow." By the way, when we were out in 

 the desert, although we were all professing 



Christians it did not seem convenient or prac- 

 ticable to have any sort of family worship; and 

 as a substitute I used to sing every morning, 

 and a good many times through the day, the 

 doxology. 



Now, ihe purpose of this little talk to-day is 

 to tell how God answered my petitions for 

 health and wisdom, and how to teach others 

 along in this line of gelling well and keeping 

 well. While 1 prayed 1 made the matter a 

 study. 1 have sometimes wondered that God 

 gives us so little specific direction in regard to 

 what meaicines we should take or what phy- 

 sicians we should employ, or whether we should 

 use medicines at all or employ physicians at all. 

 I can only say that, for myself, I have been 

 forced to decide that he has perhaps wisely left 

 these things, at least to a considerable degree, 

 for us to uecide as best we can. The great 

 Father does not propose to do our work for us, 

 nor even to do our thinking for us. He will 

 uot hear a farmer's prayers, and grant him 

 great crops, unless the farmer uses both brain 

 and muscle to accomplisb the desired end. 



The disease that had got hold of me was 

 gripping for my lungs. The doctor said a little 

 reckless exposure on my part might send me 

 beyond the reach of doctors or medicine. I 

 soon discovered that I should have to keep 

 warm— a good deal of the time too warm to be 

 comfortable. Unless I did, that unfeeling 

 giant, which we may as well call Grip as any 

 thing, made me feel his clutches. While doing 

 this, some fresh air and a little outdoor exercise 

 (not too much), I found to be of much benefit. 

 With a weak stomach and impaired digestion 

 I had to be very careful of my diet. Appetite 

 did not seem to be any guide, for I did not really 

 feel like eating any thing. After I got able to 

 be out I noticed the chills came back once or 

 twice a day, and kept giving me a setback. I 

 remember of wondering what the cause could 

 be, and I prayed earnestly in regard to the mat- 

 ter. One day after thus praying, the matter 

 seemed to be made very plain to me— almost as 

 if some kind friend had explained it. It was 

 this: I was getting hold of business a little, and 

 a good deal needed my attention. I would 

 oftentimes be busy until dinner-time or supper- 

 time. I sat down to mv meals, and remember- 

 ed, when I sat down, that I was iiery much ex- 

 hausted; then an hour later I would have a 

 chill. The suggestion that came to me was 

 this: That I must go home an hour or an hour 

 and a half before meal-time, and take a good 

 long rest. Since the return of my sickness I 

 had been troubled some with insomnia. I could 

 not go to sleep just before meal-time as I did 

 last summer. Then this suggestion, or this 

 kind friend who was advising, said, " If you do 

 not succeed in going to sleep, lie perfectly still 

 for an hour or more before you think of taking 

 food or nourishment." I felt happy in a mo- 

 ment; in fact, I felt sure I understood the cause 

 of those chills, and that I should not have them 

 any more, and I did not. A good many times 

 it was hard to stop work at half-past three, 

 especially when I did not feel faint or tired; 

 but when I woke up just as supper was ready, 

 I felt like a different person. 



Perhaps you may say that Dr. Salisbury told 

 me the same thing twenty five years ago. So 

 he did, substantially; but I had forgotten it or 

 had neglected it. And here is a great truth: 

 God often answers our prayers by reminding us 

 of things we knew already, but which we had 

 forgotten or neglected. With the lean- meat 

 diet, I was troubled with constipation more 

 than I ever had been before. The grip seemed 

 to have crippled my digestive or other organs, 

 and the hot-water treatment did not seem to 



